Best Detroit Tech Startups Of 2011

At times it seems there's enough startup buzz in this town to power 12 of Dan Gilbert's M@dison buildings, but how does one sift through the business plans of IT wannabes to find the one that could be the next Apple?

We've compiled a list of the Top 11 Detroit tech startups of 2011 to get you acquainted with the energetic, rapidly expanding tech scene in the formerly-Motor City.

The so-called Webward push is looking to take Detroit 2.0 (or was it 3.0?) and make it a rival for Silicon Valley. The city's tech incubators, business accelerators and venture capital firms deserve a story of their own, and there's little doubt that Detroit Venture Partners, Bizdom U and Tech Town are playing a key role in getting Detroit tech startups started up. But others are doing it on their own, often looking to help city residents and nonprofit organizations help themselves.

Land use and real estate are a big theme, as are mobile apps. And don't forget social networking or crowd-sourcing. Whatever the tech pulse, Detroit's startups have at least one finger on it. And we have a feeling they won't be using cardboard boxes as desks for very much longer. So here they are: The Top 11 Detroit Tech Startups Of 2011.

Hajj Fleming thinks that his new software platform holds the key to putting his company, <a href=" http://www.gokit.me/blog/" target="_hplink">gokit.me</a>, in the driver's seat in Detroit's new tech startup race.
"Detroit was the Silicon Valley of its day with the automotive industry and Motown" Detroit-based digital entrepreneur Hajj Fleming told <em>Black Enterprise</em> last month, adding that he planned to be part of the city's comeback.
The company's website describes gokit as "an online identity platform that allows you to create visually compelling personal homepages that tell your story and share your social network connections in a central location."
Hajj told the <em>Network Journal</em> that gokit's goal is to <a href="http://www.tnj.com/technology/tech-start-gokit-centralizes-social-platforms
" target="_hplink">centralize a user's online presence</a> in a way that's more formal than Facebook and more friendly than LinkedIn.
"We wanted to create something that wasn't a resume format but was a professional, business-like destination," he said. "We're going to give people the ability to share what we call 'multiple personas' for the different dimensions of who they are in the business realm."
Hajj formed gokit in March after attending South by Southwest Interactive, a tech gathering in Austin, Texas. He had just finished a photo shoot at the conference and needed to assemble a press package when the idea struck him to create a system that brings multiple information sources together in a unified platform.
The business accelerator <a href="http://www.newmeaccelerator.com/about/
" target="_hplink">NewMe</a>, which <a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/08/01/hank-williams-clickradio-kloudco_n_915091.html" target="_hplink">assists</a> "under-repesented minorities in the technology industry," chose gokit as one of 10 businesses to participate in its mentorship and training program this past summer.
<em>-- David Sands</em>